A really wild night out

Posted on June 28, 2011 | by House Fraser

Forget friday night drinks at the pub, happy hour and evening meals at your local pizza establishment, and why not step slightly outside your friday evening comfort zone and head to the zoo? London Zoo Lates, have been the talk of the office, and I went last friday to experience it for myself.

Firstly, I will tell you that I wore inappropriate zoo attire; flip flops, a maxi dress and no coat… and true to the British weather it poured down, and quite literally put a dampner on the day. So, my first rule of going to the zoo is to be prepared, the Zoo Lates start at 7pm, so I advise taking a number of wardrobe option, had I been wearing wellies and a raincoat I would have enjoyed the evening even more.

Now, why would you go the zoo on your friday evening, when you could be at the pub? Well how about the fact that you can drink at Zoo Lates, no children are allowed and there’s the yummiest food, my flat mate and I enjoyed Tiger beer with the tigers, and then tucked into a pulled pork sandwich with BBQ sauce… heaven! There’s also a champagne bar, a cocktail bar, numerous eateries and a silent disco.

It is fantastic getting to see the animals after hours, we were captivated by the lions, terrified of the bearded pigs and intrigued by the albino porcupine. The whole zoo is open and there’s a number of talks and feeding sessions, plus a rather on-trend cabaret. It is such a fun night, how often can you wander around the zoo whilst getting tipsy?! I would definitely go back, although the second rule is to plan ahead. It is impossible to see everything in those three hours, so make sure you go and see your favourite animals first, Lucy and I are planning a return during the day as we missed more than we would have liked.

I highly recommend Zoo Lates, it is great fun, just be prepared and then you’ll get the most out of it!